Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker (D) took several veiled jabs at President Donald Trump, as their public feud continues to dominate headlines.
The Daily Beast reported Friday that Pritzker — who was visiting Wagoner Elementary School in Sauk Village (roughly 30 miles south of Chicago) — was simultaneously complimentary to young students while trolling the president. In a post to his official X account, the two-term Illinois governor didn't mention Trump directly but wrote: "Our leaders in Washington could learn a thing or two from some of the best elementary school students here in Illinois."
"I just got to meet a group of kindergarteners and second graders, and they are really smart kids, and it was great to spend time with them," Pritzker said. "They get to learn every day about these classroom rules, and they follow them. And I have to say, there are a few in here I think the leaders in Washington ought to learn like, for example, 'listen carefully,' maybe 'treat each other with respect' and of course, 'make good decisions.'"
"I wish more leaders in Washington would do that," he added.
Pritzker's office shared several photos from the governor's visit to the school, including one notable photo of a Venn Diagram students made in which two circles — with one representing a governor's duties and the other listing a president's responsibilities — overlapped. While the left-hand circle labeled "governor" included the text "leads the state" and had Pritzker's name, the other circle labeled "president" read "leads the nation." The overlapping circle read: "Leaders take care of people."
The Illinois governor, who is rumored to be a contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, has been trading blows with Trump as the White House has openly threatened to send federal troops to Chicago. Pritzker maintained that violent crime in his state's largest city has been declining, and that federal resources would be better spent in states with Republican governors that have much higher violent crime rates, like St. Louis, Missouri, Shreveport, Louisiana and Jackson, Mississippi.
Earlier this week, Trump threatened to withhold more than $1 billion in Congressionally appropriated funding for an infrastructure project in Illinois unless Pritzker called him and officially requested it. Should Trump follow through on his threat, it would not only be a violation of the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, but could potentially mean Illinois taxpayers shoulder the cost.
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